Changing the game in the retail shoe industry, Joseph runs a company that designs and retails stylish, comfortable shoes for women challenged to find footwear in their size. Her inspiration: the need to find durable comfort on city streets. “I ripped apart a pair of my very expensive shoes to see how they were made. I did some research and realized that they were made for women with high arches and insteps.” Joseph decided to design shoes that were more comfy for a wider market.

Designing shoes has been a passion of Joseph’s since she was a child, and her business, launched in 2003, grossed approximately $1 million in 2010.

Dream vacation: Petit Martinique, an island off of the island of Grenada. "The thing I love about the island is that there are no electronics–no TV, no telephones, no computers. So when you’re there, you’re just engulfed in the serenity of nature and can have some good old family time."

Dream car: "Anything with a DVD player in it that will entertain my 4-year-old daughter and 6-year-old son!"

Phone: Samsung Smiley

Laptop: Lenovo X200 "It’s lightweight and compact and does everything I need it to do."

Other tech tools: Canon Powershot SX210IS "I love this camera so much because it has the Powershot compactness but the operating system of an EOS, like the Canon Red Deluxe D. It has a super zoom and the digital quality of the pictures is so awesome."

Favorite store: Crazy 8 "I shop mostly for my kids, so anywhere I can get quality at an affordable price is where I will live."

On Monday, January 30 three MassChallenge Alumni, including Samanta Joseph, traveled to New York City to ring The Opening Bell at the New York Stock Exchange thanks to our friends at the Startup America Partnership!

After listening to your feedback, we are thrilled to announce the launch of the new Samantashoes.com. Women have trouble finding stylish shoes in larger sizes (size 11, size 12, size 13, size 14). Our goal at Samanta is to bring style & comfort in your size, so we worked hard for the past several months with that goal in mind.

New Features:

It's now easier to find the styles, colors, or price range you’re looking for

You can practically touch the shoes with our photo zooming technology

You can show the world your favorite shoes by "Liking" them on Facebook

We have integrated our inventory with our retail partner, Endless (Powered by Amazon), so you can find our stylish shoes in your size (Sizes 6-14)

This blog, which will allow us to interact better with the Samanta Shoes Family

We love feedback, so use the comments below to tell us what you think.

"Samanta Joseph didn’t plan on becoming a shoe designer. But Joseph was always a bit picky about her shoes and got into the habit of creating her own – taking bits and pieces from one pair of shoes– bows or shoelaces, for example – and putting them on another pair to make her shoes unique. Now, as head of Samanta Shoes, Joseph, 33, is not only sharing her creative twists on footwear but serving a special niche market – large-size women’s shoes. The 7-year-old company offers styles up to size 14 and can be found on most major shoe online retailer sites."

Television shows have turned great brands into household names. Debra Messing returns to USA Network as Molly Kagan in The Starter Wife, recipient of 10 Emmy Award nominations. The Samanta Brand had a major feature in the season premiere. The following styles were featured: Viv Tan Pump, Celeste Burgundy, Viv Pony, Viv Sling (Red, Black, Tan), Kimberlee, and Kimberlee Tall.

Excerpt from January 1, 2007 New York Daily News. "Make 2007 the 'Year of the Money' by Nicole Lyne Pesce.

Need a little push to get those resolutions going? Last night, plenty of New Yorkers decided to kick that dead-end job and do something they truly love. As inspiration, we present 30 go-getters who managed to take a bite out of the Big Apple while still in their 20s.

"We're bringing comfort to stylish shoes," says Samanta Joseph. "I would buy a lot of expensive shoes, but they were hurting my feet and I couldn't understand why." With her husband, Kelvin, Joseph now tailors heels to suit women with different-size arches, and has even branched out to include men's footwear and jewelry lines.

Samanta Joseph (Founder and CEO of Samanta Shoes) is profiled on the Black Enterprises Business Report. Samanta Shoes makes comfortable, stylish footwear and has been featured in such programs as the Today Show, The Oprah Magazine, Inc., People, InStyle, and numerous others.

"Kelvin Joseph's living room is full of his wife's shoes. Boxes of Samanta's shoes are stacked everywhere -- dozens of them.

And Kelvin Joseph isn't complaining. His wife, Samanta, is a hot new shoe designer. And he's right behind her, admiring the shoes and putting his accounting skills to work as vice president of their thriving company, Samanta Shoes."